Overlooked in the conversation of aces due to his rough debut in 2016, Luis Severino continues to state his case anchoring the Yankees rotation. He’s the first pitcher to reach 12 wins this year and New York’s 15 - 2 record when Severino starts. Last night, Severino whiffed nine Phillies over seven shutout innings giving up six hits. This marks the 23rd straight road start in which Severino’s struck out at least six dating back to last year.

Speaking of 2017, since the start of last season, Severino leads the majors in starts allowing one run or fewer with 24. Tied for second? Max Scherzer , Chris Sale and Justin Verlander all have 22 such starts but trail Severino. Not only did Severino not issue a walk Tuesday night, he only needed 103 pitches to navigate seven innings generating 17 swinging strikes (10 with his fastball, seven with the slider) along with 22 called strikes. He also hit 100.1 MPH on the radar gun in the seventh inning. The past can affect perception, but it’s time to view Severino as an elite pitcher in fantasy going forward. He’s currently pacing towards 278 strikeouts in 234 innings with a WHIP presently below one (0.96).

That Just Happened

Playing in a National League park, the Yankees started Aaron Hicks for his defense and he responded going 2-for-4 at leadoff with his 11th home run. He also made a spectacular catch in the late innings on a deep fly ball by Rhys Hoskins . Hicks disappointed being injured early this year but he’s still on pace to hit 23 home runs with 13 stolen bases and drive in 72 if he reaches 126 games. Not too shabby.

It’s been a Jekyll and Hyde performance for Jake Arrieta the last two months. After surging to a 0.90 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 30 innings over five starts in May, Arrieta’s ERA rose to 6.66 (yikes) in five June starts with 19 strikeouts in 25.2 innings. Inevitably, the real Arrieta lies in betwixt these results but knowing when to use him could be frustrating going forward. Pretty sure it’s not all in relation to the defensive shifts employed by the Phillies.

Slumpbusters unite. Both Greg Bird and Jeimer Candelario entered game play on Tuesday hitless over their previous 14 at-bats and each ended their streaks during game play. It’s a long season kids.

Rookie Freddy Peralta , who should be called Fab Five, fired seven shutout innings against the Royals striking out 10 against one hit and one walk allowed. He’s the first rookie in the live ball era with two starts of 10 strikeouts or more and one run or less along with being the first Brewers pitcher to accomplish the feat. Peralta’s also the first pitcher since 1908 to begin his career with five or more strikeouts and three or less hits his first four starts. Last night, Peralta used his fastball 71.5 percent of the time to record 17 swinging strikes and 18 called strikes of his 102 pitches. Not sure it’s sustainable, but ride Fab Five while he’s hot.

Remember when the Indians essentially gave up Jesus Aguilar for free? Aguilar launched his 17th home run last night and surpassed his total from last season in 80 fewer plate appearances. He’s only needed 548 plate appearances to his 35 home runs with the Brewers over the last two seasons and on pace to his 35 this year in 426 at-bats. Also, Aguilar’s hitting a robust .302/.361/.615 after 68 games. Perhaps it’s not a fluke?

With Lorenzo Cain headed to the disabled list, Milwaukee will need Ryan Braun to step up. Braun responded with a double and a home run, his ninth, two runs and two RBI in their first game without Cain. Christian Yelich also hit his 11th home run and stole his 10th base. Still think Lewis Brinson was too much to give up? Me neither.

David Price recorded his ninth straight start giving up three or fewer runs to win his ninth game, and seventh within this stretch. Price worked six inning yielding five hits, one earned run and two walks with seven strikeouts. Over his last nine starts, Price’s 2.72 ERA and 1.08 WHIP bode well going forward. Of course, Price’s next start lines up to the Yankees, pretty sure he will stay off Fortnite prior to the weekend.

It’s wash, rinse and repeat in Detroit. For the second straight night Shane Greene gives up the lead in the ninth, then Blake Treinen enters to lock down the game for Oakland. Still think bullpens do not make a difference? Greene’s ERA vacillates between 3.50-to-4.15 and he’s given up three earned runs the last two games in 1.2 innings on four hits and a walk. Treinen’s converted 16 straight saves during a 24.2 inning stretch in which he’s produced a 0.73 ERA and .098 batting average against. That’s good, right?

Could Scott Schebler be the eventual center fielder for the Reds? In 80 at-bats this month, Schebler’s hitting .350/.402/.613 wiht 15 runs, four home runs and 10 RBI. He’s prone to strikeouts so streakiness will accompany him, but if he’s sitting on the wire, Schebler could be worth a shot if he hits leadoff and keeps hitting for power.

Speaking of streaky, Ozzie Albies went through a slump but has bounced back with an eight-game hit streak and has five straight multiple hit contests. He’s 17-for-37 (.459) during the streak with eight runs, six doubles, a home run, five RBI and a stolen base.

Alex Bregman homered for the second straight game without the mustache. He’s six for his last 10 with three runs, three doubles, the two home runs and four RBI. Focus on his .376 on-base percentage and .490 slugging not his present batting average. Also know, Bregman’s on pace for 96 runs, 26 home runs, 94 RBI and 14 stolen bases after a slow start.

It’s amazing how Javy Baez continues to surge in spite of his plate discipline. Almost like he owns it, but does not care. Baez has cut his strikeout percentage by over three percent this year but chases pitches and racks up swinging strikes like last year. Despite this, Baez went 4-for-5 hitting third for the Cubs with two home runs, a solo shot and a grand slam, driving in five last night. On the surface, his .276 average accompanies a lower BABIP but it’s explained by the spike in isolated power (.279) up 72 points compared to 2017. He’s traded ground balls for line drives and pacing towards 34 home runs and 27 stolen bases. Plus, Baez is one of seven players with at least 13 home runs and 10 stolen bases. The others? Tim Anderson , Trevor Story , Andrew Benintendi , José Ramírez , Mike Trout and Mookie Betts .

Last but not least, bounce back outings by both Charlie Morton and Carlos Martínez . Morton won his 10th game, of 11 decisions, striking out 13 Blue Jays over seven innings. He recorded 24 swinging strikes (12 with the curve) and 14 called strikes of his 98 pitches. Morton’s whiffed 122 batters in 95.2 inning so far with a 2.54 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. Martinez won versus Corey Kluber at home going six innings allowing six hits, two earned runs and a walk with eight strikeouts. Martinez generated 17 swinging strikes and 19 called of his 103 pitches. It’s been tough to trust Martinez of late due to his rough outings since returning from the disabled list, but he makes for an interesting gamble to target for the second half.

Night Moves

In case you missed it, Josh Donaldson suffered a setback during fielding drills and will be out for three more weeks before being evaluated.

Chad Kuhl left his start early last night due to right forearm stiffness. No bueno. Anibal Sánchez also left his start early due to cramping in his calf. There’s no word on if he will need to miss a start, but Braves fans look to Kolby Allard who started at Triple-A last night and his 2.60 ERA as a potential replacement. Not counting on it.

During his rehab outing, Jeff Samardzija lasted four innings allowing seven hits, six earned runs and two walks with six strikeouts. San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy already on record saying there will not be a six man rotation, will need to make tough decisions when Shark and Johnny Cueto return to the Giants.

What To Watch For

A battle of young pitchers with different assessments coming into the season face off in Atlanta, Luis Castillo versus Sean Newcomb .

Can Brent Suter ride the wave of commercial success of replicating Jim Carrey’s role in Dumb and Dumber to more success versus the Royals at home? Suter’s been very good of late. His opponent, Danny Duffy ’s been like a box of chocolates, not sure he can be trusted in Miller Park versus Aguilar and Braun highlighted above.

Should fantasy owners be buying in on Zach Eflin ? Today’s outing versus the Yankees could provide the answer.

Be sure to check back for tonight’s Closing Bell for the answers to the questions above along with recaps of the afternoon’s action to stay ahead of your competition on Fantasy Alarm.

 

Statistical Credits:

MLB.com

Fangraphs.com

BaseballSavant.com